Center for Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience

Neuroscience research at UAMS is supported by extramural awards from a variety of federal and private funding agencies and is recognized as one of the institution’s areas of research excellence. Neuroscientists within the Division of Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience are recognized internationally for their research on Alzheimer’s disease, spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, neuroimmunology, glial cell biology, neurodegeneration, fetal alcohol syndrome, neuroendocrine regulation of growth and reproduction, and immune responses to brain infection.

The Center for Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience was established through funding of a P30 center grant by the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke of the NIH. This center serves as a centrally located resource for neuroscientists at UAMS, providing access to sophisticated equipment, trained technical staff, and the research expertise of established investigators through three Core laboratory areas.The Center for Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience was established through funding of a P30 center grant by the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke of the NIH. This center serves as a centrally located resource for neuroscientists at UAMS, providing access to sophisticated equipment, trained technical staff, and the research expertise of established investigators through three Core laboratory areas.

The Animal Surgery and Animal Model Development Core provides an area where trained personnel can perform routine surgical procedures and harvest tissues for primary cell cultures. In addition, investigators can work with Core personnel to develop new animal models for neurological disorders research.

The Histology and Image Analysis Core focuses on isolating cells or tissues by laser microdissection (LMD) and preparing tissues for immunocytochemical staining and analysis of digitized and captured images.

The Biochemistry, Cell, and Molecular Biology Core provides the tools needed to analyze changes in gene and/or protein expression and will work closely with Histology and Image Analysis Core personnel in analyzing laser-captured cells and tissues.

The Principal Investigators responsible for design and administration of the Center for Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience are:

It is important to note that the majority of projects carried out by Center faculty can be classified into the general theme of neurotrauma, neuroinflammation, and glial cell biology. Creation of the Core laboratories facilitates interaction among NIH-funded investigators and other neuroscientists at UAMS, and supports the development of programmatic research funding. Another major goal of the Center is to increase the number of NIH-funded grants by offering technical support, training, and advice.